[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 5]
[Senate]
[Pages 6507-6508]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        GLOBAL YOUTH SERVICE DAY

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now 
proceed to S. Res. 528.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 528) designating April 25, 2008, as 
     ``Global Youth Service Day.''

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I rise in support of a resolution 
designating April 25, 2008, as ``Global Youth Service Day.'' This 
resolution recognizes and commends the significant community service 
efforts that youth are making in communities across the country and 
around the world on April 25 and every day. This resolution also 
encourages the citizens of the United States to acknowledge and support 
these volunteer efforts.
  Over the weekend beginning this Friday, April 25, youth from across 
the United States and around the world will carry out community service 
projects in areas ranging from hunger to literacy to the environment. 
Through this service, many will embark on a lifelong path of service 
and civic engagement in more than 100 countries around the world.
  This event is not isolated to one weekend a year. Global Youth 
Service Day is an annual public awareness and education campaign that 
highlights the valuable contributions that young people make to their 
communities throughout the year.
  Mr. President, the participation of youth in community service is not 
just a ``nice idea'' for a way to spend a Saturday afternoon. Youth who 
are engaged in volunteer service and service-learning activities do 
better in school than their classmates who do not volunteer. Youth who 
engage in volunteering and other positive activities are also more 
likely to avoid risky behaviors, such as drug and alcohol use, crime, 
and promiscuity. Service within the community also contributes 
positively to young people's character development, civic 
participation, and better understanding of the needs of their 
neighbors.
  A recent survey by Civic Enterprises found that 47 percent of high 
school dropouts reported that boredom in school was a primary reason 
why they dropped out. High quality service-learning activities can, 
however, help young people make important connections between the 
curriculum and the challenges they see in their communities.
  It is important, therefore, that the United States Senate encourage 
youth to engage in community service and to congratulate them for the 
service they provide.
  In an effort to recognize and support youth volunteers in my State, I 
am proud to acknowledge some of the activities that will occur this 
year in Alaska in observance of National and Global Youth Service Day:
  1. Anchorage's Promise, which works to mobilize all sectors of the 
community to build the character and competence of Anchorage's children 
and youth, is again sponsoring the annual Kids' Day three-day events in 
Anchorage this year. Youth will provide significant service to their 
peers and to adults who attend Kids' Day activities: Students from King 
Career Center will serve as volunteer safety patrols. Students from the 
University of Alaska Anchorage will serve as greeters. Members of the 
West High School Junior ROTC will provide security. The youth members 
of the American Co-Ed Pageants will serve as entertainment directors. 
Students at Chugiak High School will help their younger peers with 
bicycle and seatbelt safety demonstrations. Youth volunteers at the 
Imaginiarium will help with displays and lead groups of visitors 
through the hands-on experiments. Youth docents at the Anchorage Museum 
will help youth visitors explore the museum. Youth will also organize a 
Book Give-Away and provide entertainment through song, dance, 
gymnastics, and karate.
  In addition to the Kids' Day events, young people from every region 
of Alaska will serve their communities in the following ways:
  2. Young members of the Kiwanis Key Club will, through the RYLA Youth 
Leadership program, perform various service projects from March through 
May.
  3. Alaska Youth for Environmental Action will sponsor A Week Without 
Plastics activities in Anchorage, Palmer, Fairbanks, Juneau, Homer, 
Yakutat, and Sitka. Youth organizers will help educate their 
communities, through various outreach activities, on the effects of 
plastics on our environment.
  4. Youth in the Anchorage School District will host a dance to raise 
funds for economically disadvantaged students who do not qualify for a 
free or reduced price school lunch; make daily checks for recyclable 
items, and hold a fundraiser for lymphoma and leukemia research.
  5. In partnership with the Anchorage Municipal Libraries, youth will 
help organize the city's summer reading program and materials.
  6. In partnership with Covenant House and Congregation Beth Shalom, 
young people in Anchorage will involve their peers in transforming old 
T-shirts into reusable grocery bags.
  7. 4-H and other youth volunteers, in partnership with the Alaska Zoo 
in Anchorage, will provide plastics education information and 
participate in the planting of trees for Earth Day.
  8. In Ketchikan, the Boys and Girls Club will sponsor a city-wide 
clean-up involving many elementary, middle schools and high school 
students.
  9. From January through May, young people whose parents are stationed 
at Elmendorf Air Force Base have been involved in monthly service 
projects.
  10. Members of Camp Fire at Highland Tech will sponsor a student 
contest between the advisory teams within the school to see who can 
bring in the most plastic to recycle. Each student who participates 
will receive a reusable shopping bag from Fred Meyer. Students will 
also hold a Safety Fair.
  11. In Nome, Alaska, the student council will sponsor the annual food 
drive, open the local food bank, and go house to house to gather food 
for the needy in the community.
  12. The Nome Junior ROTC will gather seeds for the school's 
greenhouse and prepare plantings in the old gold dredges around town.

[[Page 6508]]

  13. In Juneau, youth members of the Ethics and Leadership program 
will make ceramic bowls that will be donated to the Glory Hole, 
Juneau's homeless shelter and soup kitchen.
  14. From January through May, members of the Mayor's Youth Commission 
in Anchorage select a volunteer project that will impact the 
Municipality for the One Good Deed program.
  15. Youth members of the Cook Inlet Tribal Council in Anchorage reach 
out to the community at large through the Native Games Community 
Outreach project.
  16. The Mediak Video, Radio, and Magazine Clubs of Anchorage will 
sponsor a Spring Quarter Movie Night, create Public Service 
Announcements for radio station KNBA, and complete the 8th edition of 
Alaska Aloud, the only magazine written by and for Alaska Native 
students in the Anchorage area.
  I am so proud of all of these young people. I value their idealism, 
energy, creativity, and unique perspectives as they volunteer to make 
their communities better and assist those in need.
  Many similarly wonderful activities will be taking place all across 
the Nation. I encourage all of my colleagues to visit the Youth Service 
America Web site--www.ysa.org--to find out about the selfless and 
creative youth who are contributing in their own States this year.
  I thank my colleagues--Senators Akaka, Bayh, Boxer, Brown, Burr, 
Cantwell, Cardin, Casey, Clinton, Cochran, Coleman, Collins, Craig, 
Dodd, Dole, Durbin, Feingold, Feinstein, Gregg, Inouye, Isakson, 
Kennedy, Kerry, Landrieu, Lautenberg, Levin, Lieberman, Lincoln, 
Martinez, Menendez, Mikulski, Murray, Ben Nelson, Bill Nelson, Obama, 
Specter, Stevens, and Tester--for standing with me as original co-
sponsors of this worthwhile legislation, which will ensure that youth 
across the country and the world know that all of their hard work is 
greatly appreciated.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution 
be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider 
be laid on the table.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The resolution (S. Res. 528) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                              S. Res. 528

       Whereas Global Youth Service Day is an annual public 
     awareness and education campaign that highlights the valuable 
     contributions that young people make to their communities;
       Whereas the goals of Global Youth Service Day are to--(1) 
     mobilize the youth of the United States to identify and 
     address the needs of their communities through service and 
     service-learning; (2) support young people in embarking on a 
     lifelong path of service and civic engagement; and (3) 
     educate the public, the media, and policymakers about 
     contributions made by young people as community leaders 
     throughout the year;
       Whereas Global Youth Service Day, a program of Youth 
     Service America, is the largest service event in the world 
     and in 2008 is being observed for the 20th consecutive year 
     in the United States and for the 9th year globally in more 
     than 100 countries;
       Whereas young people in the United States and in many other 
     countries are volunteering more than in any other generation 
     in history;
       Whereas children and youth not only represent the future of 
     the world, but also are leaders and assets today;
       Whereas children and youth should be valued for the 
     idealism, energy, creativity, and unique perspectives that 
     they use when addressing critical global issues such as 
     poverty, hunger, illiteracy, education, gang activity, 
     natural disasters, climate change, and myriad others;
       Whereas a fundamental and conclusive correlation exists 
     between youth service, lifelong adult volunteering, and 
     philanthropy;
       Whereas service-learning is a teaching and learning 
     strategy that integrates meaningful community service with 
     mastery of academic curricula by helping young people make 
     important connections between what they are studying and the 
     challenges that they see in their communities;
       Whereas several private foundations and corporations in the 
     United States support service-learning as a means for young 
     people to build character and develop the leadership and 
     career-preparedness skills that are necessary for the United 
     States to be competitive in the 21st century, including time 
     management, decision-making, teamwork, and problem solving;
       Whereas a report by Civic Enterprises found that 47 percent 
     of high school dropouts reported boredom as a primary reason 
     for dropping out;
       Whereas high quality, semester-long service-learning has 
     been found to increase students' academic engagement and 
     achievement, motivation to learn, school attendance, civic 
     participation, character development, and career aspirations;
       Whereas Global Youth Service Day engages millions of young 
     people worldwide with the support of 75 lead agencies, 45 
     international organizations, and 120 national partners;
       Whereas a growing number of Global Youth Service Day 
     projects involve youth working collaboratively across 
     national and geographic boundaries, increasing intercultural 
     understanding and promoting the sense that they are global 
     citizens; and
       Whereas both young people and their communities will 
     benefit greatly from expanded opportunities for youth to 
     engage in volunteer service and service-learning: Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) recognizes and commends the significant contributions 
     of the youth of the United States and encourages the 
     cultivation of a civic bond among young people dedicated to 
     serving their neighbors, their communities, and the Nation;
       (2) designates April 25, 2008, as ``Global Youth Service 
     Day''; and
       (3) calls on the citizens of the United States to--
       (A) observe the day by encouraging youth to participate in 
     civic and community service projects and by joining them in 
     such projects;
       (B) recognize the volunteer efforts of the young people of 
     the United States throughout the year; and
       (C) support the volunteer efforts of young people and 
     engage them in meaningful learning and decision-making 
     opportunities today as an investment in the future of the 
     United States.

                          ____________________